The 3 main mistakes to avoid to succeed with an outsourcing project

Within the last two years, more and more companies have opted for a better management of their internal resources. This is done by adding outsourcing to their operations. By opting for this strategy, they benefit from knowledge, expertise and skills that are either not available in-house or in local candidates.

Not all companies have the capacity to build in-house teams or the budget to hire additional resources, either in the short or long term. This is where outsourcing comes in. While outsourcing has countless benefits, it requires careful preparation and consideration in every aspect.

In its article “Top Three Mistakes Clients Make When Hiring A Dedicated Software Development Team”, Forbes identifies the three most common mistakes companies make when hiring outsourced, dedicated software development teams. But at ProContact, we’ve found that this pattern is perfectly applicable to any outsourcing project. Here’s how to make your project successful.

Why are companies outsourcing more and more?

Outsourcing certain services and tasks allows companies to quickly and easily recruit trained and skilled people to handle specific needs. This solution is sufficiently well-stocked to allow said companies to choose the positions to be delegated, while adapting the number of resources to their real needs. An added benefit is that this comes at controlled costs, often more interesting than traditional recruitment.

What are the financial benefits of outsourcing?

No company is spared from budget constraints. Compared to traditional recruitment, outsourcing allows you to rationalize your expenses in several ways:

• With controlled costs;
• A concrete reduction of risks;
• A great improvement in efficiency;
• Faster results;
• The possibility to have new development perspectives;
• Quick and efficient access to talent beyond local borders;
• Support from a provider with real expertise.

So, what are the three mistakes to avoid when outsourcing according to Forbes?

It’s a given that recruiting outsourced resources is a quick and easy task to implement. But to achieve this result, organization, transparency, communication and caution are required. There are three main mistakes that can quickly muddy the waters and derail the outsourcing project. These are:

Lack of a concrete plan

The success of an outsourcing project depends on a solid strategy. As a client, the company needs to know its own objectives to be able to develop a powerful strategy and communicate it to its outsourcing provider. Therefore, it must first define its problem(s) in a concrete way, by analyzing each aspect.

Recruiting the first service provider that comes along

The idea is not to work with the first provider that comes along, but to deal with several in order to narrow down the selection. Make a very thorough comparison, not to find yet another supplier, but to find a real partner who will support the company.

The right questions to ask yourself at this stage of the process are:

• What are my requirements for the project?
• What are my objectives?
• Who is the final recipient of my needs?
• What roles should I include in my outsourced team?
• When should the service start?
• Can the cost difference be a deal breaker?

Answer these questions in the form of an outline or even a summary to begin refining the project’s details. The goal of this exercise is to effectively pull your ideas together, thus avoiding confusion, miscommunication or misinterpretation.

Not looking at past performance of potential providers

Today, it is a must to compare everything! This is a very good thing, since this exercise allows you to verify and judge the credibility of a company. Larger investments, such as outsourcing one or more services, warrant such in-depth research. Learn how to evaluate your outsourcing provider!

Her are Forbes’ advice regarding the provider:

• Have they worked in your field or industry before?
• Will they understand the product?
• Do they understand their purpose?
• Do they understand your users?

Failure to identify communication and collaboration channels

As with any type of partnership, a business relationship also requires effective communication. Therefore, from the very beginning of the outsourcing service, it is vital to establish some ground rules for yourself and the team. This is done by asking yourself the following questions, as Forbes reminds us:

• How involved do you want to be throughout the outsourcing process?
• How often do I need to be informed?
• Which team member(s) would I like to have as a point of contact?
• Am I more comfortable with Zoom meetings, Skype calls, emails or text messages?

Contact us!

How can we help your company get through the outsourcing process at ProContact? Outsourcing is our business: count on us and our agents to help you plan, set your objectives and targets! At ProContact, we work closely with you to include this concrete, proven solution in your business strategy. We can offer you an unprecedented adaptation of your way of working thanks to the arrival of resources located elsewhere, without losing time, money or quality…quite the contrary!

ProContact is more than a contact centre. Thanks to trained, qualified, hand-picked and multilingual agents, we enable the companies that choose us to gain credibility and above all to satisfy their customers, regardless of the situation and in complete transparency.

Outsourcing has become a tangible and concrete business strategy for the development of the company. To find out more about our services and for a quality partnership, click on our contact form, send us an e-mail or call us on (+33) 1 84 76 24 03.